The
Abbasid Caliphate was the third
Islamic Caliphate which was built and named after descendant of
Muhammad's youngest uncle,
Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib. They ruled as caliphs, for most of their period from their capital in
Baghdad in modern-day
Iraq, after assuming authority over the
Muslim empire from the
Umayyads in 750 CE.
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Great Mosque of Samarra, Iraq |
During Abbasid Revolution(749 - 751 CE), in early October 749 , Abu al-'Abbās as-Saffāh's(soon to be first Abbasid Caliph) rebel army entered Kufa, a major Muslim center in Southern Iraq, with priority to eliminate his Umayyad rival, caliph Marwan II. The latter was defeated in February 750 at a battle on the (Great) Zab river north of Baghdad, effectively ending the Umayyad caliphate, which had ruled since 661 AD. Marwan II fled back to Damascus, and was ultimately killed in Egypt that August.
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Great Zab River |
as-Saffāh established
Kufa as the new capital of the caliphate, ending the dominance of
Damascus in the
Islamic political world.
As-Saffāh's four-year reign was marked with efforts to consolidate and rebuild the caliphate.
Jews, Nestorian Christians, and
Persians were well represented in his government and in succeeding
Abbasid administrations. He died of smallpox on June 10, 754
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Abu al-'Abbas as-Saffah being declared Caliph |
Education was also encouraged under the rule of Abbasid Caliphate, and the first paper mills, staffed by skilled
Chinese prisoners captured at the
Battle of Talas, were set up in
Samarkand. Battle of Talas was a military engagement between the
Arab Abbasid Caliphate along with their ally the
Tibetan Empire against the
Chinese Tang dynasty, governed at the time by
Emperor Xuanzong. After a stalemate in several days of combat, the
Tang lost the battle because the
Karluks defected from the
Tang side to the
Abbasid side.
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Battle of Talas |
Al-Mansur succeeded his brother
as-Saffah as the second
Abbasid Caliph reigning 754 CE – 775 CE. One of the first change the
Abbasids, under
Al-Mansur, made was to move the empire's capital to
Baghdad in
Iraq. Baghdad was established on the
Tigris River in 762. In 756,
Caliph Al-Mansur sent over 4,000 Arab mercenaries to assist the
Chinese Tang dynasty in the
An Shi Rebellion against
An Lushan. When
al-Mansur died on the hajj to Mecca in 775, the caliphate's treasury contained 600,000 dirhams and fourteen million dinars.
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The Abbasid "Baghdad Gate" (8th. century) in Raqqa (Syria) |
Al-Mahdi, son of
al-Mansur succeded him as the 3rd
Abbasid Caliph who reigned from 775 to his death in 785. In 775, a
Byzantine envoy,
Tarath, travelled to
Baghdad to convey the congratulations of the
Byzantine emperor to
Al-Mahdi on his accession to the throne.
Tarath was so pleased with the hospitality he received that he offered to put his engineering knowledge to use and build a mill that would generate annual profits, of 500,000 dirhams, equal to the cost of its construction. In 777 AD he put down the insurrection of
Yusuf ibn Ibrahim in
Khurasan.
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Dirham of Al-Mahdi |
Abu Muhammad Musa ibn Mahdi al-Hadi was the fourth
Abbasid caliph who succeeded his father
Al-Mahdi and ruled for one year from 785 until his death in 786 AD. He was very open to the people of his empire and allowed citizens to visit him in the palace at
Baghdad to address him.
Harun al-Rashid was the fifth Abbasid Caliph. Younger brother of Al-Hadi, Al-Rashid ruled from 786 to 809, during the peak of the Islamic Golden Age. His time was marked by scientific, cultural, and religious prosperity. He established the legendary library Bayt al-Hikma ("House of Wisdom") in Baghdad in present-day Iraq, and during his rule Baghdad began to flourish as a center of knowledge, culture and trade. In 796, he moved his court and government to Raqqa in present-day Syria.
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al-Rashid receiving a delegation sent by Charlemagne at his court. 1864 painting by Julius Köckert. |
Rashid decided to focus on the rebellion of
Rafi ibn al-Layth in
Khorasan and died while there. While the
Byzantine Empire was fighting
Abbasid rule in
Syria and
Anatolia, military operations during this period were minimal, as the caliphate focused on internal matters, its governors exerting greater autonomy and using their increasing power to make their positions hereditary.
al-Amin, was the sixth Abbasid Caliph. He succeeded his father, Harun al-Rashid in 809 and ruled until he was deposed and killed in 813, during the civil war with his brother, al-Ma'mun. The civil war came to be known as the fourth Fitna. Caliph Harun al-Rashid, had named al-Amin as the first successor, but had also named al-Ma'mun as the second, with Khurasan(state) granted to him as an appanage. Later a third son, al-Qasim, had been designated as third successor. This war ended with a two-year siege of Baghdad and the eventual death of al-Amin in 813.
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Depiction of Fourth Fitna |
Al-Ma'mun became the seventh
Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. He ruled for 20 years of relative calm interspersed with a rebellion supported by the
Byzantines in
Azerbaijan by the
Khurramites. He died on 9 August 833 near
Tarsus. The city's major mosque (
Tarsus Grand Mosque), contains a tomb reported to be his. He was not succeeded by his son,
Al-Abbas ibn al-Ma'mun, but by his half-brother,
al-Mu'tasim.
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Tarsus Grand Mosque |
al-Muʿtaṣim bi’llāh was the eighth
Abbasid caliph, ruling from 833 to his death in 842. When
al-Ma'mun died unexpectedly on campaign in August 833,
al-Mu'tasim was well placed to succeed him, overriding the claims of his nephew. His rule marked the end of the strong caliphs. He strengthened his personal army with
Turkish mercenaries and promptly restarted the war with the
Byzantines. His military excursions were generally successful culminating with a resounding victory in the
Sack of Amorium. His attempt at seizing
Constantinople failed when his fleet was destroyed by a storm.
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Siege of Amorium |
al-Wāthiq Bi’llāh, became the ninth
Abbasid caliph reigning from 842 until 847 AD.
Al-Wathiq was the son of
al-Mu'tasim by a
Byzantine Greek slave,
Qaratis. His reign was brief and unremarkable, being essentially a continuation of
al-Mu'tasim's own, as the government continued to be led by the men
al-Mu'tasim had raised to power.
al-Mutawakkil ʿAlā ’llāh was an
Abbasid caliph(10th in line
) who reigned in
Samarra from 847 until 861. He succeeded his brother
al-Wathiq. He
continued to rely on
Turkish statesmen and slave soldiers to put down rebellions and lead battles against foreign empires, notably the
Byzantines. He was assassinated on on 11 December 861 by the
Turkish guard with the support of his son,
al-Muntasir which began the troubled period of civil strife known as
"Anarchy at Samarra".
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The spiral minaret in Samarra |
al-Muntasir bi-llah (11th Abbasid Caliph) ruled in
Baghdad from 861 to 862, during the
"Anarchy at Samarra".
Al-Muntasir's reign lasted less than half a year; it ended with his death of unknown causes on Sunday 7 June 862 at the age of 24 years. He was succedd by
Al-Musta'in (12th Abbasid Caliph) who ruled from 862 to 866.
Al-Musta'in was then succeeded by
Al-Mu'tazz(13th Abbasid Caliph) in
Baghdad and ruled from 866 to 869.
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Dirham of al-Muntasir minted in Abbasid Samarra in 862 |
al-Muhtadī bi-'llāh (14th Abbasid Caliph) was chosen by Turks after the death of
al-Mu'tazz. He ruled in Baghdad from 869 to 870.
Al-Muhtadi turned out to be firm and virtuous compared to the last few Caliphs. If he had come earlier, he might have restored life to the Caliphate; however, by now the
Turks held more power. His reign, however, lasted less than a year. After some disagreements and conspiracies, he was killed by the
Turks in June 870. He was the last Caliph of
"Anarchy at Samarra".
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| Dirham of al-Muhtadi, minted in Wasit in 869 |
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